Berkshire Palate

When I reached out to the sales manager at Hotel on North, he let me know that they work exclusively with Berkshire Palate for the catering, set up, and coordination for weddings hosted at the hotel. Paul, the manager for BP reached out and we set up a time to visit and tour the space. My now husband and I thoroughly enjoyed the space but even more so speaking with Paul about all the possibilities and our vision. There were two different coordinators that I worked with because one had left prior to my wedding. Both were very responsive and I felt confident in our choice. Faith was the coordinator for my wedding. When it came to my wedding weekend (we had a welcome party, wedding, and brunch) in December 2023, there were unfortunately a few issues. I’ve worked in the hospitality industry for many years and while we made it work and went with the flow as best as we could, I was disappointed in several things that happened. When I met Faith in person, it seemed like we were discussing things for the first time and that made me feel very uneasy. She had said she would take care of certain things like making sure the tv was set up trivia or the crossword puzzle being put out during cocktail hour (whether she meant personally or would make sure it was communicated, I’m not sure) that was left to my bridal party to figure out. There were some impacts due to staffing issues (folks calling out or showing up late) such as our cocktail hour bar not being set up on time, trays being left on a table instead of passed (and empties left lying around), misunderstandings regarding decisions previously made (though photos were sent, it wasn’t technically in writing), and things all together being left out (coffee/tea service that was on our invoice). I wouldn’t say that it was a disaster by any means, and luckily we are an understanding group, however, I do believe most of these issues would have been resolved if there was someone in charge present the night of our wedding. Paul did come at a certain point to fill in the gaps for his staff but if someone was there from the start, perhaps it wouldn’t have been as frustrating of an experience. Regarding the food, while we were thrilled with the tasting, the night of the wedding left a lot to be desired. Our guests had a good time, they enjoyed the hotel, and they were happy to be there. Knowing what I know now, I would recommend being explicitly clear with every request and having it in writing (I could have been more thorough with this) and not deviating from their standard catering menu. I think in the end we trusted that they could pull off some unique changes and it didn’t land how we were expecting. We did dine in the restaurant that weekend for lunch and everything was great, which is why I believe it was our special requested menu items that fell flat. Would I recommend them? I would proceed with caution.